Estelle in Wonderland
by JAGartist
Summary: What happens when the TOV cast are portrayed as "Alice in Wonderland" characters? A mad, mad story where the possible is impossible and the impossible is possible. Rating may change later on.
1. Down She'll Go Down the Rabbit's Hole

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: None what-so-ever.

A/N: I've been into TOV for the last year or so, so I decided to start writing FFs about it. Also, I've never seen a TOV FF based off the classic before, so I figured that I'd be the first, if I am the first. If not, then here's another one for you.

.oOo.

**Chapter 1: Away She'll Go down the Rabbit's Hole**

"Ah!" cried Estelle as several books fell from their places on the shelf. She had tried to reach one book, but ended up with at least a dozen as a result. She stared with worry towards the books lying in a mess on the floor. This was why she needed a bigger ladder; that way something like this didn't happen. But that was Flynn, worrying that she would loss her balance or something.

Estelle stepped off the step-ladder she had been using and carefully started gathering up the books she dropped. A knight's head popped up from around the corner. "Has something happened, my Lady?"

The young princess shook her head. "No, I just made a small mess; nothing to worry about." The knight nodded and returned to his post at the library's door.

Estelle smiled for the knight's kind concerns and returned to her task. It was only when there was one book left did she stop. It was the title that made her pause. She left it alone for a moment as she returned the other books to their respectable places and only returned for it after she was done. She slowly picked it up.

There was dust covering it, meaning that it hadn't been touched in a while. Using her sleeve, Estelle wiped away the layer of dust to reveal the title.

_Alice's Adventures in Wonderland…_

It took Estelle a moment for something to click. "Oh! I remember this book. This was the one Mother read to me when I was younger. I completely forgot about it." She looked outside. It was still early. She had some time before they got there. _A few chapters wouldn't hurt…_

Completely forgetting about the original book of interest, Estelle took a seat on one of the reading couches, the book lying neatly on her lap. She flipped to the first page with care were the book more fragile than it showed.

_Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do…_

How the memories started to come back as she read. She soon became lost in its contents and the time passed by.

It wasn't until she heard a clock go off did she look up in shock. "Oh no! That late already? I'm late!" She was carefully marking her place in the book when she heard fast approaching footsteps. What she saw bizarre her.

"Flynn?" It was the Commandant, but his appearance startled her. The uniform she was used to seeing him wear was replaced by slacks and a waist coat, though that wasn't what surprised Estelle. It was the rabbit ears on his head. She took a step forward. "Flynn? Why are you…?"

He appeared to have no noticed her as he pulled out a watch from his pocket. For a moment, no one said anything. Estelle jumped in surprised when he suddenly turned his attention finally to her.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Estelle stuttered as she tried to answer, but could not get an answer out. She was too stunned by what she was seeing to answer properly. He stared at his watch.

"Never mind, I'm late. I'm late for a very important date." Without warning, he rushed off, leaving Estelle stunned.

Now he was rhyming and now she was curious. "What in the world is going on? I have to find out!" With that, she took off after Flynn, calling after him. "Flynn, wait up!" She caught sight of him several times as they ran through the castle, but not once did he stop.

All that time she heard the echoes of Flynn's voice bouncing off the walls. "Quickly! Quickly! I'm late for a very important date!" Surely someone would have noticed the Commandant's strange behavior, but all that time she didn't run into a single knight.

_What's going on here? First Flynn is acting strange and now everyone seems to have vanished into thin air!_

Eventually, the chase led to the gardens, but when she scanned the area, Flynn had vanished without a trace. "Okay… now where'd he go?" The words had barely left her lips when she saw a shade vanish towards one of the corner. _Flynn…_

She ran to where the shade was spotted, but no one was there. "I could have sworn… If that wasn't Flynn, then what-"

Estelle never finished as the ground below her gave away and she began to fall. She couldn't get a scream out of her mouth as she fell down what seemed like a bottomless pit. Eventually she slowed down, but she continued to fall. She was almost in complete darkness, but a square shaped object caught her eye. She knew what it was and flipped on the Magic Lantern, letting light into the entire hole. Furniture and other objects cluttered the tunnel, all floating in midair.

"This is curious," Estelle stated. "Well, I won't think about falling down the stairs after this." She picked up a book sitting on bookshelf she passed. The hole was deep or she was going slower than she believed herself to be, but either way it would probably be a while before she reached the bottom if there was one.

She opened the book, but was surprised to see that each page had only pictures. She loved books, but she couldn't keep looking after a minute had passed, so she placed the book on another passing shelf. She looked down.

The hole seemed to go on for miles. "I wonder if I'm at the world's center now. It's possible, I think, but who can say for sure." She looked up. She couldn't see the top anymore, so she looked downward again. She still couldn't see the bottom.

"If this hole goes through Terca Lumireis, I guess I'll find myself on the other side of the world. If that's the case, then where would I end up? Oh, I hope I don't find myself in the ocean! That would be terrible!"

Fortunately, Estelle wouldn't find herself in the ocean. One minute she was falling at a steady pace; the next her fall became jerky and she landed in a pile of leaves and stick. She was unharmed. The sudden change in speed left her startled. "What a landing that was! I'm glad my landing was softened, or I could have broken a bone or two."

She heard coughing and looked up to see Flynn standing there with his watch, tapping his foot impatiently. "We must go for time is short!" He dashed off again, leaving Estelle standing up and dust dry leaves and twigs off her.

"I know Flynn is about organization and keep a schedule, but I've never seen him acting like this before." _I hope this is just a really bad joke by Yuri or Raven, or even Judith. Flynn would never agree to something like this unless one of them was involved._

"Flynn! Wait up!" Estelle called, running into a hall that twisted and turned in every direction possible.

.oOo.

_PS. I'm sorry I haven't been updating my other stories recently. I've had writer's block and I've been busy with school. Hopefully now that summer's almost here, I'll be able to update again._


	2. Rainstorm

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: None what-so-ever.

A/N: That was fast! I got reviews for this story already. Thank you so much **Madame Mush** and **SometinERanother**!

.oOo.

**Chapter 2: Rainstorm**

There was no end to the number of doors as Estelle rushed through the hallway, still following Flynn. At this point though, she was starting to wonder if he really was Flynn. If he wasn't, then who was she following? At this point, she wasn't chasing him because she thought he was Flynn. Rather, the reason was to found out who this man really was and why he looked like Flynn if he wasn't Flynn.

She could have tried the doors, but since she did not hear a door open or close, there was no need. She knew that the Flynn-look alike was ahead of her, so why check to see if he was behind one if one hadn't been open?

"I must hurry for I am late!" she heard "Flynn" say, his voice echoing in the winding hallway. What was he late for anyway? This was another question Estelle promised herself to ask when she caught up to him.

It was then that she heard a door open. Estelle had just turned a corner when she saw the door at the far end of the hall close. _He had to have gone in there… _she thought. She rushed over, but when she opened it, she saw that a smaller door blocked the way. She opened that door which led to another door which led to another door. She found the last door and barely managed to squeeze through it, exiting into a rather large room whose ceiling she could barely see.

She turned just in time to see the door vanish behind her. No way to go back. Then something occurred to her. _Hold on. I was barely able to squeeze through there. "Flynn" is bigger than I am, so how did he…?_

She thought about it, but everything she thought as an explanation was impossible. Eventually, she decided to forget the thought all together. She took a better scan of the room.

At the far end the room was a small door much like the one she had just come through, only this one appeared too small for her to crawl through. She walked over and attempted to open it, but found it to be locked. _Oh… Now what? I can't go back, but I can't move forward either… Speaking of which, where'd "Flynn" go?_

She took a peek through the keyhole and sure enough, there he was, tapping his food again. He tapped his watch and then ran off, leaving Estelle to find a way through on her own. It was obvious he wanted her to follow, but to where?

She pulled away and stood up to maybe find a key she could use. When she turned around though, she discovered a small glass table with a small bottle and gold key. "Strange… Those weren't there before."

She cautiously stepped over and took a hold of the key. The key had rusted a bit, but much the gold and design on it was still visible. "This must be for the door," she said, turning to look at it. "However, I'm still too big to fit through the door." She placed the key back on the table and picked up the bottle. There was a tag on it that said "Drink me".

Estelle tilted her head in curiosity. "Perhaps this will help me." She was about to take a sip when she thought better. "No, better look first."

She scanned for any signs that the liquid inside was poison. "If one drinks much from a bottle marked "Poison", it's almost certain to disagree with one sooner or later." Discovering that there was no label marked "Poison", she dared to take a sip.

"Wow… it tasks like a cherry tart!" She took another sip.

"Grapefruit." She took two more sips, leaving at least half the bottle's contents left.

"Pineapple. Roasted Turkey." It was only then she did realize that the floor was getting closer. Frightened, she scanned her surroundings and saw the room expand. She thought that the room was getting bigger, but she struggled to hold the enlarged bottle in her hands, she knew that to be false.

_The room didn't get bigger. I got smaller! _She stared at the bottom in front of her. "It must have been the drink." Her eyes caught the door and she realized that she was now at a small enough size to get through. She had forgotten one important fact though.

When she attempted to open the door, she remembered that the door was locked. "Oh no, don't tell me…" She looked up towards the table. The key stilled laid neatly where she had placed it down. She bonked her head with her fist. "How could I have forgotten so easily?" She ran over and attempted to climb up the table, but to no avail. She kept sliding back down towards the ground every time she tried. Finally, she realized it was hopeless and while sitting rested her head on her hands.

"Oh, what do I do know?" As the words left Estelle's lips, a small _plop_ sound caused her to jump. She turned in surprise and found a large box full of what seemed to be tarts. She stood up and rushed over. She struggled to remove the lid, but the task was done. She picked up one of the treats and saw that it and all the others said "Eat me".

Since she was willing to try anything, she took a bite from the treat. For a moment, nothing happened. Then her body began to grow, enabling Estelle to smile. "At last, something is going right."

She spoke too soon. She realized this as the room began to appear smaller than it really was. Eventually her head hit the ceiling and she had to sit with her knees bent to be able to fit. She was relieved when she finally stopped growing.

"Oh. I guess something's not going right after all. But at least…" She took the key from the table and barely managed to unlock the door and open it, but it was hopeless. She still couldn't fit through it.

Now she was scared. She was trapped in a room with no way back and she couldn't think straight because of her frustration. Her thoughts returned to her friends back home. _I wonder if they've realized that I'm gone. I hope they're all okay and that they don't find that stupid hole. Look at the trouble it caused me._

Tears began to form in her eyes. She missed her friends. "I should have never come here! I should have not let my curiosity get the better of me!" The tears began to fall and Estelle sobbed in her hands. Without her knowing at first, the room slowly began to fill with her tears, they coming faster than they could leave through the door.

As Estelle cried, she spotted the bottle that had shrunk her and she took it into her hands. With shaking hands she drank the remaining contents in one swallow. In less than a second she was small again and she landed inside the empty bottle as she felt. She saw the mess her tears had made. "Oh, I wish I hadn't cried so much."

She and her bottle boat were swept by the pool of tears through the open door into what appeared to be the ocean. It wouldn't have surprised her if it was.

.oOo.

_I had a scare. The only working laptop in the house suddenly stopped working a few days ago, so I thought that would mean I wouldn't be able to post as often as I'd like._

_Then my little sister somehow managed to reset the other laptop completely, making it work again. I'm trying not to get my hopes up though. It may stop working again after a little while…_


	3. A Caucus Race and Growth Problems

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: None what-so-ever.

A/N: I'm happy that my story is getting so many hits, but little comments about it. Thank you **Madame Mush **and **SometinERanother** again for your reviews!

.oOo.

**Chapter 3: A Caucus Race and Growth Problems**

It wasn't long before Estelle was joined by others, but not a single one was human. Birds and reptiles and creatures of the sea they were, but they appeared to be human-like despite their physical appearance. She popped her head out of her bottle ship.

"Excuse me, but can you help me, please?" Estelle asked, but the creatures zoomed by her without a second glance. They hardly cared that she was there. Estelle took a risk and pulled herself further out of the bottle.

"Hello? Help me, please!" She called out, but was ignored a second time. A wave came up from behind and swept over her, pushing her back into the bottle. It took her a moment to realize that the bottle had been filled with water and she rushed to the surface for air.

She noticed then that the humanoid creatures were all heading in the same direction, so they must have known where they were going. She would have followed, but she had no way of doing so. Without a sail or an oar, all she could do was drift along.

"What a day this is turning out to be," said Estelle. "I figure I won't be getting on a boat anytime soon after this. I'm sick of being in this bottle."

Another wave came up from behind and pushed her along as though it had heard her wish. The bottle tipped over from the force, causing all the contents, including Estelle, to be swept into the sea. Estelle drifted along for a moment, waving her arms in panic, before somehow eventually hitting land. For a moment, she was relieved. She had hardly lifted her head when someone, or several someones, stepped on its back end and pushed her back down again. Every time she sat up, she was stepped on and her face would plop back into the sand.

"I say, little girl! You'll never get dry that way!" someone called. Estelle managed to move a little ways to her right to stop being stepped on before looking up. A giant palm tree stood over her, but it was the creature within its leaves that had caught her attention. It was a Dodo, smoking a pipe and twirling his finger. Estelle was astonished.

_A talking Dodo bird? Well, if I can grow and shrink simply by eating or drinking something, then I suppose talking animals is possible. _Then she remembered what the Dodo had said a moment ago.

"Wait! G-Get dry?" Estelle asked, looking around her. The humanoid creatures she had spotted in the sea were running around the giant tree, though to what extent she didn't know.

"Of course!" answered the Dodo, taking another puff of his pipe. "A caucus race is the only way to get dry!"

"But how does-" Estelle began to ask, only to have a third wave wash over her. When the wave pulled back, she found herself running along with the rest. She looked down and realized that she was indeed dryer.

"I don't understand," she began again. "How does a race dry you off?"

The Dodo ignored her question and continued to sit and smoke his pipe. Another wave appeared, washing over the group. When the water pulled back, Estelle somehow found herself sitting on the head of the Pelican who didn't seem to mind that she was there. Estelle wasn't sure how the wave was making her change spots drastically every time it came in and at that point personally didn't care anymore.

Something caught Estelle's eyes and she gasped; "Flynn" washed up on shore from the last wave. He wiped away some of the water from his eyes before looking towards her. She figured she must have looked very bizarre to him as he gave her a funny look.

"Humans can be so strange. It's hard to believe they're not deranged," he said to himself before checking his watch and jumping up in surprise. He dashed off again, but allowed a glance towards Estelle. "I'm sorry I can't stay, but I mustn't delay!" He turned away. "I'm late, I'm late!"

"Please wait!" Estelle called out, taking a daring leap and landing in the sand unharmed. She dusted herself off and followed after him into a nearby forest. She saw him dash in and out of the trees, but eventually lost sight of him. She finally stopped to catch her breath.

"Oh… I lost him again," she said. She looked around and saw nothing but trees and bushes. She couldn't even see the beach anymore, but she had no desire to return there anyway. She looked ahead to where she last saw "Flynn".

"At this point, I don't think this is one of Yuri or Raven or even Judith's tricks. Even they couldn't have thought of something like this," Estelle said to herself. "I should also believe that the person I've been following isn't Flynn. He has rabbit ears and he does look so much like Flynn, so I suppose I should just call him Rabbit Flynn or something along those lines." She felt a moment of déjà vu as she said those words, but she couldn't recall where she had heard those words before. She eventually pushed the thought away.

Her walk eventually let her to a little house in the middle of the woods. It was only when she got close did she realize it was Rabbit Flynn's house with the words "W. R. F." plastered on the front door.

"'W. R. F.'… Hmm. I wonder if I've gotten the name correct or something," Estelle said to herself.

"Mary Ann! What are you doing out here?" said a familiar voice, causing Estelle to yelp in surprised. She turned to see Rabbit Flynn behind her, tapping his foot with an impatient look on his face.

"M-Mary Ann?" Estelle asked. "But I'm not-"

"I need my gloves and fan! Go! Go get them from my room! I'm late to see the Duchess!" Rabbit Flynn interrupted, pushing Estelle forward. He pulled the trumpet chained to his waist and blew it in her face to get her to go. "Don't come out until you find them, you hear?"

The door was shut behind her as Estelle was rushed inside by Rabbit Flynn's loud trumpet. Now she was more irritated than curious. "Now I know that's not the Flynn I know. He most definitely wouldn't order me around like that, or blow a trumpet in my face for that matter."

She hurried up the stairs and entered what appeared to be Rabbit Flynn's bedroom. A cozy place it was, but it was the kind of the room the Flynn Estelle knew would never be seen having. She searched around for a minute or so until she stumbled upon another box with treats, though these did not say "Eat me" as the tarts from before did. None the less, Estelle was unfazed and took a treat out.

"He won't notice that one's gone," Estelle said, popping the small treat into her mouth and closing the box. She pulled open a drawer and began to search its contents. "Now if I were Rabbit Flynn, where would I put gloves and fans?"

It was then she began to grow larger, though she hardly realized it until her head had hit the ceilings. She yelped. "Oh no, not again!" she cried. She watched helplessly as her body filled the room, pushing aside and knocking over everything. She feared the house would break with her growing size until the treat was at its full effect and the growing stopped. She sighed in relief. "Phew! Anymore and I'd be having arms and legs out of the doors and windows!"

She scolded herself. _I haven't learned anything since coming here. Eating or drinking anything will cause some sort of side effect on me, particularly in one's size_ She thought to herself as she stared down at her enlarged body.

"That's the last time I eat or drink anything while in this strange place!"She declared.

.oOo.

_Writing… drawing… writing… drawing… I love both so much, it's hard to decide which one I'll do when I wake up… Why can't there be two of me so that I can do both at the same time?_


	4. Mary Ann's Bad Morning

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: None what-so-ever.

A/N: Honestly, I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter. I didn't want to follow the original exactly, so working on my own version took a while. That and art was calling me again. Thank you **SometinERanother** for your review!

.oOo.

**Chapter 4: Mary Ann's Bad Morning**

"Mary Ann! What is keeping you?" called out Rabbit Flynn.

"Uh oh…" Estelle said. With the sudden growth spurt, she completely forgot about him. She heard the front door open and footsteps climbing up the stairs. He wasn't going to wait for her anymore. "I can't imagine what he'll think when he seems his room in the mess that it is!" she cried. She quickly placed her elbow against the door so that Rabbit Flynn couldn't enter. She could feel the door move as him attempted to get in, but he was denied entrance.

"Mary Ann! Open the door this instant!" Rabbit Flynn called out. Estelle said nothing.

_I shall not! There's hardly enough room in here for me as it is. You coming in here will only make matters worse! _She thought.

"Tsk!" she heard Rabbit Flynn say before she heard him head back outside. "That Mary Ann! When she comes back outside, she'll-"

"What is wrong, Sir?" said a woman's voice from behind him. Just as Rabbit Flynn turned to see the speaker, Estelle managed to position herself in a way to look out the front window. A young woman, probably two or three years older than her, stood at the end the walkway. She had brown, wavy hair that reached her shoulder and wore a simple maidservant's uniform. There were several packages in her arms.

_So this is Mary Ann… _Estelle thought. _Wait… How did I get mistaken as her?_

Rabbit Flynn just gave a blank look on his face trying to figure out who she was. Then it came to Mary Ann. "Oh! You're glasses!" She stepped forward and pulled out a pair of glasses from his front pocket before placing then on his face.

He blinked a few times before finally speaking. "M-Mary Ann!" Several times he looked between the house and the woman before him, trying to put the pieces together. "I thought I sent you inside to fetch my gloves and fan!"

Mary Ann gave a confused look. "How is that possible? You sent me to the market at sunrise, though that was hardly wise." She would go on to say this:

"What a rush I was in  
>(For you see I was in quite a spin)<br>I would have never guessed  
>That something like today would be addressed<p>

The baker's bread was dry  
>And he was low on rye<br>His wife screamed in my face  
>Even though it was neither the time or place<p>

The fruits were spoiled  
>The eggs too boiled<br>And the children were loud  
>(They all seemed too proud)<p>

The cows went a muck  
>Screaming like buck<br>Chickens went clucking  
>As their feathers went plucking<p>

There was this fellow  
>Whose skin I recall being yellow<br>He played a cello  
>But his skills were just jello<p>

And what a fright I had!  
>(This is something I must add)<br>A horse went wild  
>One who was nicely tiled<p>

He knocked me to the ground  
>And I cried and frowned<br>Goods spilled every where  
>This I could hardly bear…"<p>

Poor Mary Ann continued on with tears in her eyes as Rabbit Flynn stood there unable to do anything about her crying. Estelle could only watch in despair. _Poor Mary Ann… I thought my morning was bad, but she was worse off than I._

Rabbit Flynn listened to Mary Ann's ranting without a fuss. He only spoke again when she had finished her tale. "Now I remember. Yet, if you've been gone all morning, then…" He cast a glance towards his house. "Who was it that I sent up?"

_The girl that's been following you… _Estelle thought with a sigh. At that moment, she could hear whistling come from up the road and moved closer to the window to see who had come. It was a lizard, much like the creatures from the beach, carrying a ladder and what appeared to be chimney cleaning supplies. _A chimney sweeper…_

"Morning, Governor!" called the lizard with a wave. "Fine day today, yes?"

"Good morning, Bill!" Mary Ann called, her terrible morning completely forgotten. That's when Rabbit Flynn had an idea.

"Bill, I'm glad you're here!" he exclaimed. "I need your help with something."

"At your service, Governor!" Bill said with a tip of his hat. Rabbit Flynn pointed towards the house. "There seems to be something blocking access to my room. I have no ladder, but if you could…"

Bill smiled. "Right away, Governor!"

There was nothing Estelle could do to keep Bill from placing his ladder against the house and climbing up to get a glance into the room, as her arms were now pinned from the lack of space. All she could do was wait. Eventually, she saw Bill stick his head into the window and the two stared at each other in the eye for a good minute without a single word. Eventually Bill pulled his head out and said calmly, "There seems to be a rather large person in your room, Governor." It sounded as though something like this happened on a daily bases.

Next thing Estelle knew, she heard what seemed to be something, or someone, fall to the ground. She moved her head against and saw that poor Mary Ann had fainted from the news and Rabbit Flynn was trying to bring her too. _Despite what seems to be his mistreatment of her, he still shows concern, just like the Flynn I know… _Estelle thought.

"Well don't just stand there!" Rabbit Flynn, giving up his attempts to awaken Mary Ann after a few minutes. "Get that thing out of my house!"

_Thing? How rude! _Estelle thought. She was starting to dislike Rabbit Flynn with every statement he made.

"How shall I do so, Governor?" Bill asked. Estelle had nothing against the humanoid lizard, but she was finding the habit of calling Rabbit Flynn "governor" to be rather annoying quickly, which didn't help her growing irritation.

"I don't know!" Rabbit Flynn answered, sounding as irritated as Estelle was. "Pull it up the chimney or something. Just get rid of it!"

_Why does he keep referring me as 'it'? _Estelle asked. _Can't he bother to even refer to me by gender at least? _The wish was basely registered before she heard Bill start climbing his ladder once more. _Wait? Did he say 'Pull it up the chimney'? _"There's no way I can fit up such a small space!" she cried, but she was ignored as she heard Bill reach the top of the chimney and start crawling downward. That was the last straw.

"If they're not to going to listen, I'll make them listen!" Estelle called. She managed to move her foot into the base of the chimney and gave a good kick. In other cases, she would have thought against it, but this world had caused her irritation level to go beyond what she would like it to be, so she was willing to go outside reasoning for once.

Sure enough, she felt something hit against the toe of her foot followed by a crash and startled cries towards the front twenty or thirty seconds later. "Pardon me, Governor!" she heard Bill say.

As she sighed with relief, she heard Bill and Rabbit Flynn mumble to one another. Shortly afterwards, more voices joined theirs. The commotion at the house had caused a crowd to gather.

_Where'd they come from? _She thought with panic. The last thing she wanted was to bring attention to herself, or any more attention to herself at that.

"We're going to need a barrel to do that!" she heard one member of the crowd say

_Huh?_

"We'd better use two just in case."

_Two what? _She moved again, putting in an uncomfortable position again, and watched as what appeared to be two wheel barrels of straw and hay be pushed towards the house. It was right then and there that she knew their intensions.

"They plan to burn the house down, with me inside!" she cried. She attempted to move around, completely forgetting about her size. She finally gave up when she banged her head against the ceiling again. "Oh! What a way to end!" she mumbled, tears coming to her eyes again.

She slapped herself mentally and wiped the threatening tears away. _I can't just sit and cry. Remember what happened last time, Estelle? I have to find a way out!_

As the thought left her mind, something smacked against her head without warning, leaving her dazed for a moment. Once she could think again, she looked down and saw what appeared to be a rather large rock about the size of her palm (at least it would be if she her regular size). Before her eyes though, the stone turned into a plump cake. Estelle stared at it curiously. _Well, based on my previous experiences, my size tends to change every time I eat or drink something. I can't possibly get any bigger than I am now, so this should make me smaller… right? Hmm… I don't know about this…_

Her train of thought was interrupted when she suddenly smelled smoke. "I'll just hope for the best!" she cried. With some difficulty, she moved her hand to grab the cake and toss it into her mouth. Sure enough, she began to get smaller. At one point, she remembered that the door was still closed and quickly opened it before she was too small to turn the knob. She continued to shrink until she sat at three inches high. "Not where I want to be, but it's better than before!"

She raced out of the room, though the open front door, under the feet of the crowd, past the gate, and into the nearby woods without looking back.

_I've had enough of this place! I want to go home!_

.oOo.

_Sorry for the wait! This chapter took forever to do, and yes! Mary Ann actually makes an appearance in my version, since she didn't actually make a physical appearance in the actual book. Poor Mary Ann…_

_I feel like Estelle was a bit out of character in this chapter, but I guess if I were like her in that situation, I'd act out of character too. But I'm not like Estelle, so I wouldn't know for sure._


	5. Listen to You Caterpillars

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: Just one I guess; my parody of "Against Idleness and Mischief" by Isaac Watts.

A/N: I feel bad for not posting in my other stories. I have this really good idea for a new story, hence the guilt, but I'm waiting until this one is done before doing it. My conscience tells me, "Finish at least one first before starting another!"

So that's what I'll do. I'll finish at least this one before starting another, and try to get a few more chapters in an older. I'll succeed, hopefully.

And again thank you **SometinERanother **for your last review! I'm glad you like this FF so much!

.oOo.

**Chapter 5: Listen to Your Caterpillars**

Time seem to feel like forever before Estelle finally stopped running, though it had to have only been a few minutes or so. She would never been able to run for so long were she to have come years ago; it was only from all her travels with her friends that gave her legs and lungs to run so far in so little time. She wiped her forehead as she scanned her surroundings.

The part of the forest she had come to was more pleasant than the part before Rabbit Flynn's house, but it still felt like a maze. _At least I can see the sky_ Estelle commented, looking up. There was little skyline to be seen, but it could be seen none the less.

Her legs chose at that moment to cry out in pain, causing Estelle to groan. _Well that's what happens when you find yourself in a crapped space and then go running right after getting out of it. _She looked around and finally chose to sit and stretch her legs under a mushroom that shaded her. Finally able to get a break from all the craziness around her, she chose to recall just she had learned from being in such a place.

"Well let's see, I can name several morals from this adventure. One, never following a strange man wearing a waistcoat and rabbit ears, no matter how much he looks like one of your closest friends. Two, the people here may look like my friends, but they are not, and they tend to have personalities different than what you are used to sometimes," she cringed at the thought of when Rabbit Flynn decided to burn his own house down even with her in it.

"Now that I'm thinking about it, Rabbit Flynn was the only person whom I saw a similarity in appearance to. I wonder if it's possible if there are others that look like my friends, but actually aren't." She closed her eyes. "If that's possible, then could there be those who look like my enemies, yet aren't quite them exactly too?"

Estelle shook her head in alarm. "I should certain hope not!" She sighed. "I wish my friends were here with me. If the idea was possible, I'd rather not face it alone."

She looked up as she spoke, and noticed what appeared to be a stream of bubbles. For a moment, they just looked like ordinary bubbles in her eyes. But after a quick examination, it was revealed that the bubbles weren't shaped in the round form they should be. Rather, they appeared to be the vowels of the alphabet in no particular order.

Once again, Estelle allowed her curiosity to get the better of her and pushing herself up followed the flying foams towards the source. She had to push large blades of grass out of her way, many which were yellowed at their tips, the task not being a picnic.

She finally pushed the edge blades aside and spotted the source of the vowel-shaped bubbles. A single caterpillar sat alone on a mushroom, one very similar to the one Estelle had been sitting under a moment ago, though this particular insect was very much different from ones Estelle had even seen.

In one hand (at least that's what it seemed like anyway) was what appeared to be the mouth end of a hookah. In two other hands were a notebook and a pen; the caterpillar seemed to always have something to write in there based on the constant writing he seemed to do. Every so often, he'd place the mouth piece of the hookah in his mouth, inhale, and the vowel-shaped bubbles would be blown out from his mouth, revealing the source. Though it was the caterpillar's face that surprised her more than anything else.

"W-Witcher?" she said, louder than intended. The caterpillar stopped in his write to look her way. For a time, the two looked at each other in silence, though he continued to exhale the vowel foams.

Finally, the Witcher-like character inhaled more of whatever he was inhaling and exhaled it out with the words, "Who are YOU?" He had made it sound more like a demanding question rather than an optional one.

"W-Well," Estelle stuttered. "I'm… not quite sure, at the moment anyway."

"How so?" the Witcher-caterpillar look-alike asked ("I'll call him Witcherpillar or something like that," Estelle thought to herself).

"Well," Estelle began, trying to find the best way to explain her situation. "I knew who or what I was this morning, but I've changed several times since then."

"Explain yourself," Witcherpillar said, returning to writing in his notebook.

"I'm afraid I can't explain myself," Estelle stated, "for as you see, I'm not myself."

"I don't see," Witcherpillar said bluntly.

Estelle grew frustrated. Here she was trying to explain her situation and he was just complaining in her eyes. None the less, she kept trying. "I can't explain it more clearly than that," she continued. "How can I when I can't even understand it myself? My constant changes in size have been very confusing."

"No it is not," Witcherpillar again stated.

"Well, I don't know about you, but it's just unusual to me!" Estelle finally stated.

"Please recite!" he said.

"Well," Estelle said (she realized she was saying 'well' quite a lot).

"How doth the little blue bird  
>Improve his weaving skill,<br>And make it so that he is heard  
>For every precious quill!<p>

How beautiful his nest is,  
>How graceful the work,<br>Knowing the reward is his  
>For the mate does not lurk!"<p>

Estelle couldn't quite figure out how it related to her situation, but it was the first thing that came to her head, though the wording did not seem right somehow.

"The wording is incorrect," the caterpillar said.

"Not quite correct is right," Estelle admitted. "I know it's wrong from beginning to end, yet I can't seem to remember how it actually goes for some odd reason."

"Who are you?" Witcherpillar suddenly asked, completely ignoring Estelle's statement and bringing the conversation full circle, much to the princess's uttered shock and growing irritation. She had never been so annoyed so much in one day and this Witcher look-alike wasn't helping. Tired of his questions, she decided to ask one of her own.

"Would you care to tell who YOU are first?" Estelle firmlyasked.

"Why?" he asked.

"Oh!" Estelle said in frustration. She quickly turned to leave the caterpillar to his confusing short phrases. She had barely gone ten paces before Witcherpillar called out.

"Wait a moment!" he said, lifting the pen hand in a wave. "I have something important to say!"

Estelle stopped in her tracks. Witcherpillar's words truly sounded promising, but she had a feeling she was wasting her time. But rather than keep walking, she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, turned around, and walked back to him. She stopped about five steps from him and waited.

Finally, Witcherpillar said, "Keep your temper."

Yup, total waste of time in Estelle's head. "Was that all?" she asked.

"No," Witcherpillar said. "What exactly do you want?"

"What do I want exactly?" Estelle asked and was silenced. What exactly did she want? She knew she wanted to be her normal size again, but that request did not seem right. Eventually, she knew the answer.

"Home," she said. "I would very like to leave this place and go home."

"I see," the caterpillar said. "Now the question is, 'How do you solve the problem?'"

"Wouldn't you know?" Estelle asked, even though she already knew the answer.

"No," came the expected response. Estelle shook her head in defeat and turned to leave again. "Well," she heard him say suddenly.

"I'd seek the cat," he said plainly.

"The cat? What cat?" Estelle asked, facing Witcherpillar in curiosity.

"You'll know HIM when you SEE him," he said. The two were silent for several minutes. Estelle could have left then and there, but something was telling her that there was something more.

"One side will make you grow taller and the other side will make you grow shorter," Witcherpillar said suddenly.

"What exactly?" Estelle asked. She looked away for only a moment to see if she could spot what he was talking about.

"The mushroom of course," he answered. When she turned to face him again, he was gone, as though he had only been a figment of her imagination.

_Hmm... I guess he got my point after all..._

"Oh, and another thing!" Witcherpillar's voice said, though Estelle couldn't identify where it was coming from. "I wouldn't stay in this world for a long time if I were you!"

"W-What?" Estelle cried, but she heard Witcherpillar no more.

.oOo.

_Damn, Witcher was practically completely OOC in this story. And my version of "Against Idleness and Mischief" kind of sucked (this is what happens when you get the urge to write at 12:00 at night when you're about to go to bed and you desperately want to finish it)._

_Anyways, sorry __**SometinERanother**__, but Raven wasn't the Caterpillar like you thought. Though he probably would have made a nice choice if I didn't consider him for another role, which you should probably see in the next chapter or so. It was a nice guess though!_

_Please R&R! Later_

_Edit: You know, the name of Witcherpillar actually sounds kind of creepy for some reason. Oh well._


	6. Forgetfulness and Paintings

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: Nothing in this chapter, that's for sure.

A/N: Well, there ain't much to say right now, but my summer's almost half gone *sob*. A part of me isn't ready for senior year…

Oh, I suggest you go back to the last chapter. I added a small amount of writing towards the end. It'll have a connection to this chapter a little.

.oOo.

**Chapter 6: Forgetfulness and Paintings**

"Let's see…" said Estelle as she examined the mushroom. She scanned the object from all sides before eventually returning to the starting position. "According to Witcherpillar, one side will make me grow taller and the other side will make me grow shorter. Sounds simple enough, but…" She tilted her head sideways in confusion. "Which is which? It's round all the way around, so how can I tell which side is the one I need?"

It didn't help that the mushroom looked exactly the same all the way around, but eventually she just grabbed a fist full of both and pulled. The pieces that came out were probably as big as her head, but it didn't matter to her. She looked at both pieces, hoping to find a difference, but found none. "Well, the only way to know is to try one and see what happens."

She took a small bite out of the one in her left hand and as she swallowed the morsel, she felt herself begin to grow taller. She smiled. "I guess I picked right!" Once again, she spoke too soon for she soon realized that the trees around her were getting smaller. It was the room with the key all over again. "Why do I always encourage myself like that right before things get worse?" she asked to no one in particular. She continued to grow until her head was as high as the tallest trees there. She sighed in both relief and sorrow.

"I'm not three inches high anymore, but now I'm too tall to do much of anything!" she said. She closed her eyes. "I wanted to be bigger, but not like a tree." At that moment, something pointy stabbed her in the face, causing her to gasp in surprise. It didn't hurt per say, but it was unpleasant. She opened her eyes, but not before she was poked several more times.

A pigeon, or rather two pigeons, was the culprit behind the constant poking and they weren't happy in the least. "Ouch!" Estelle cried as they each gave another peck with its beak. "What did I do?"

"Go! Beat it, serpent!" one bird called, identifying itself as male. "You'd think that placing the nest up here would keep them away!"

"Indeed," replied the other bird, the female of the two. "But they're no stop to them!"

"Serpent? Are you referring to me?" Estelle asked in curiosity. Even though they were the one poking her, she was more curious about their situation than her own misfortune at the moment.

"No, we're talking about the branch next to you. Of course we're talking about you!" the male called, giving her another peck.

"I can assure you, I'm not serpent," Estelle said calmly. Though many had caused her irritation, she can understand the stress this couple was having.

"Oh? Then what are you then?" the female asked, a look is disbelief in her eyes.

"Just a girl whose been turned around one too many times and who can't seem to stay at her true height," Estelle answered truthfully. She'd curtsy were she not surrounded completely by trees. "I'm Estellise, but most everyone calls me Estelle."

"A likely story," said the male pigeon. "And these friends of yours are?"

"Well, there's Yuri, Rita, Karol, Judith, and Raven. There's also Repede, Ioder, and… and…" Her mind went blank after that. For some reason, she couldn't remember the rest of her main group of friends no matter how much she tried. Not only that, but many of the people from

"And what?" asked the female pigeon.

"There are others!" Estelle exclaimed. _I just can't seem to remember at the moment._

"Lies!" called the male pigeon, giving her another peck. "You're here looking for eggs, aren't you?"

"We suppose you're going to say that you've never had eggs before, too?" asked the female.

"For your information, I have had eggs before, and I do happen to like them!" Estelle said. "And second of all, I'm not here looking for eggs. Even if I wasn't, I certain wouldn't want yours!" She pouted. "I don't like them raw…"

"Well, then be off with you then!" said the male, and Estelle watched as he and his companion returned to their nest. Estelle sighed and looked at the two pieces of mushroom in her hand which she was now barely able to keep a grip on without squishing them.

"And the other will make me grow shorter," she told herself in sorrow. She nipped at the pieces and she slowly began to shrink until she had returned to her right size. She should have been happy, but in truth, she wasn't.

Slipping the two pieces of mushroom into separate pockets on her dress, she walked onward. What just happened still bothered her though. _Something strange is happening. For some reason, I can't seem to remember some things. I remember Yuri and most of the others, but I feel like I'm forgetting a person or two. Why is that?_

_Well, _she said, clapping her hands behind her. "I'm sure it's nothing too serious. They'll probably come back to me in a while." She continued on walking, pushing the thought away. No use fidgeting about it, she believed.

Eventually, she came upon another house, though it appeared small and simpler than Rabbit Flynn's house ("Why did I name him like that again?" Estelle asked herself). She was hesitant to knock in case the owner on the other side (if he/she was home) was as insane as everyone else she had met as well.

She had thought about just moving on when the door suddenly swung open, barely giving her enough time to get out of the way. She watched as a glass plate whizzed past her head just seconds later and smashed to pieces against the tree that had been directly in line with the door. The sudden movements caused Estelle to fall over in surprise; she stayed on the ground for several minutes before finally getting on her hands and knees and taking a peek inside.

Not a soul was there, at least from what she could tell. She half-expected someone to just pop out of nowhere and throw another plate. She eventually got over her hesitation, stood up, and slow but surely made her way inside. As the door closed behind her (she didn't bother to try and go back the way she came), she looked around.

She had entered a hallway that seemed to go on forever. The walls were painted a bright green and though not a single door or window existed, the wall seemed to be covered in paintings, each as high as the walls themselves. Some showed outdoor scenes while others showed rooms one would find in a regular house ("Of course, I've seen nothing that's regular to me," Estelle exclaimed).

Closing the door behind her, Estelle started walking. When she thought of it as an endless hallway at first glance, she began to realize that it really was endless. "Unless the back of the house is miles away, this would be impossible!" she said.

Of course, a lot of impossible things have happened since she got to this strange world. She kept having a nagging feeling that there was something familiar about the world she had come to, but she couldn't remember. _Of course, I can't seem to remember a lot of things recently…_

She was pulled from her thoughts as she heard what sounded like rippling water. She looked up to see a humanoid frog that wasn't there before standing in the middle of the hallway. Though barely as high as Estelle's knee, the frog was wearing a blue and white servant's top with gold buttons. He hardly noticed Estelle's presence, or if he did he chose to ignore her.

It was at that moment that Estelle's nose twitched, leading to a loud sneeze several seconds later. She opened her eyes just fast enough to see, to her astonishment, the servant frog leap from his spot into one of the paintings (it was a garden from the looks of it), and the same rippling water sound from before echoing the hallway. She cautiously stepped closer until she stood right in front of the garden painting. She moved her hand forward, expecting nothing to happen and instead was amazed when her hand goes right through.

She quickly pulled her hand back. Now she understood what all the paintings were able, or at least she believed she did. "Each of these paintings must lead to different areas or other parts of the house. Only one way to find out for sure."

She turned and scanned the walls until the painting of a kitchen appeared. She was starting to get hungry again, but she knew better at this point. Regardless, she moved her hand forward, the rippling water sound echoing off the walls once more, but rather than pull back, she pushed forward until her entire body disappeared into the painting.

It felt like she was passing through water, but she remembered dry thankfully. Only seconds after stepping through, she found herself in the same kitchen from the picture, only to have to duck as another plate zoomed over her head and disappear into the painting. _At least that explains were that other plate came from, _Estelle though, remaining in a crouched position.

Her nose suddenly itched again and she sneezed once more. Several times actually. It was only when she pinched her nose did she finally stop. Her eyes caught sight of someone at one end of the kitchen ("A cook perhaps?" Estelle asked herself) whose own attention was focused on a cauldron that despite the amount of smoke coming out from it didn't seem to make the kitchen into a hazard zone. Every so often, the cook would grab a plate from nearby and fling it in a random direction. Estelle watched in horror as the cook took what appeared to be at least a gallon of pepper and pour all of it into the pot, causing Estelle to pinch her eyes and cough as more pepper clouded the air. "No wonder I keep sneezing! That's way too much pepper!" she cried.

The cook seemed to be unaffected by the pepper smoke, which is a factor that Estelle couldn't understand at all. She cough some more, barely hearing a second person over it.

"If you don't want to be suffocated by that cloud of gloom, I'd come over here away from it," said a voice, a very familiar female voice from the other end of the room. Willing to do anything to get some real air, Estelle started moving her way towards where she heard the voice. As she got further away from the smoking cauldron, the easier she could breath. It wasn't until she could barely smell the pepper did she find the owner of the voice.

Sitting on a chair upon a raised platform was what appeared to be a duchess, based on what she was wearing. The woman herself had violet eyes and hair, but it was definitely the pointed ears and blue antennas that started Estelle.

"Ju-!" she started to say, but stopped herself. The woman before her obviously wasn't Judith, but it did look a lot like her (_I'll dub her Duchess Judy then_, Estelle thought).

Duchess Judy smiled. "Well, if it isn't a young girl," she said. "I am the Duchess of this estate, and you are?"

Estelle jumped to her feet and curtsied. "Oh! I'm Estellise, but everyone calls me Estelle," she answered.

"Estelle, is it?" Duchess Judy asked. "I'm pleased to meet you."

_Wow… she really is a lot like… like… _Estelle was unable to come up with a name in her mind, which frightened her. _Oh no, I've forgotten someone else now!_

"You looked troubled," Duchess Judy said.

"It's my memory. I'm having trouble remembering people I've met and places I've been where I'm from. I know you remember me of someone, but I can't seem to remember who and it's frightening!" Estelle blabbed out before she realized it, ending with a gasp some seconds later. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to push my troubles on to you like that."

"It's alright," Duchess Judy said with a tone of sympathy in her voice. "It's not often I get visitors, so a casual conversation never hearts anyone. Isn't that right?" She turned her head towards a couch sitting on her right. Estelle had to cover her mouth from releasing another gasp as she saw who Duchess Judy was talking to.

He was an older man, for you could see the grays in his black hair, with eyes that shined a bluish-green. The only thing that seemed to make him not be human was the real cat ears and tail, which moved around on its own.

_Raven… _ Estelle though. _Since he has cat ears… Cheshire Raven_. Seconds later, the memories of her older friend were gone, leaving Estelle completely miserable. _I can't understand why I keep forgetting people…How many more people will I forget before I get out of here?_

"You got that right. It's really boring here, Duchess," Cheshire Raven said, a smirk that made it look like he was up to something on his face.

It was there that Estelle remembered what Witcherpillar had told her earlier.

'_I'd seek the cat,'_ he had said. _'You'll know HIM when you SEE him.'_

_Cheshire Raven must be the cat Witcherpillar was talking about. It has to be him! _Estelle thought. Before she could ask though, she heard the cook cry and turned in time to see the cook had lost her mind and started throwing things at Duchess Judy and Cheshire Raven. The latter vanished before a plate could hit him and Duchess Judy sat there moving her head around dodging flying objects. Estelle moved out of the way to avoid being hit. After a view minutes though, the cook stopped her rampage and turned her attention back to the soup.

"Well, that was fun," Duchess Judy said, a smile still on her face. Estelle watched as she got to her feet and step down from the platform. "I'd stay and chat some more, but I have to go."

"Go? Go where?" Estelle asked. She knew it was no doubt none of her business, but she was curious none the less.

"The King of Hearts had called me to court for some reason or another," Duchess Judy exclaimed. Estelle swore she saw some disgust on the woman's face as she said it.

"Who is the King of Hearts?" Estelle asked. For the first time, Duchess Judy had a serious look in her eyes.

"I only hope you never have to meet him," she exclaimed. "He is no man you would want to be near. Let's hope he never finds out about you."

For a moment, Estelle couldn't say anything due to shock. She was surprised when Duchess Judy's expression changed back to a carefree expression. "Well, I hope we meet again."

"Y-Yes. I hope so too," said Estelle, and she watched as Duchess Judy made her way through the cloud of pepper smoke completely unaffected by it and vanish through the painting Estelle had come out from moments before.

_She seemed uneasy about this King of Hearts. I wonder who he really is? _Estelle said. She was uneasy. It was then she remembered Cheshire Raven.

"Oh no! I lost him when that terrible cook starting her rampage!" Estelle cried, looked around with frantic. But the man (eh, feline) was nowhere to be found.

"And just when I thought I was closer to finding my way home…" Estelle said. She allowed her head to nod a moment before she looked up with determination. "No, I can't give up! I have to find him!"

She knew that he was no longer in the room, so she rushed through the pepper cloud, through the painting, and back into the hallway once more. Estelle looked around and spotted the garden she saw the humanoid frog enter earlier. Something in her was telling her to look there. Within seconds, she entered the painting and vanished.

.oOo.

_You'll have to excuse my lateness and the sucky chapter. I've had other things on my mind (like my stupid summer reading for one), and I was having trouble writing this chapter, so sorry that the second half looked like it was thrown together last minute._


	7. The Cat Knows to an Extent

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: Nothing in this chapter, that's for sure.

A/N: Only one excuse for my lateness: _school_. I started a few weeks ago and I've had little time since then. I've been slipping in here when I have the chance to get something down, but it hasn't been much.

So here's a new chapter, just so you know I haven't croaked yet.

.oOo.

**Chapter 7: The Cat Knows to an Extent**

The garden was the most astonishing thing Estelle had ever seen. Sakura and cherry trees danced in the light breeze. Daisies, dandelions, violets, and many other flowers appeared to be singing in sync with the trees. Estelle swore she saw a red rose wink at her, but she pushed it off as a hallucination from her tiredness.

In the center was a small table and several chairs, a pot of tea and assorted teacups on top of the table. Estelle cleared her throat; it had been a while since she had something to drink. She almost placed a hand on the teapot handle, then thought better and pulled away. No way she was going to make the same mistake four times ["Or was it five?" Estelle asked herself].

She tilted her head up and spotted a white gate at the far end of the bizarre garden. Moving past the tea set, she stepped up to the gate and was relieved and surprised to see it unlooked. She opened it and looked beyond the garden's borders. Another forest, though this one appeared much more friendly than the other one. Closing the gate behind her, she stepped into the forest and started walking. She didn't know where she was going, so she just allowed her feet to carry her instead.

She had a lot to think about as she walked. The sudden losses of memory kept coming up the most. To her, every time she saw someone she knew from her world, she'd forget the name of that person, the one she knows, not the look alike. This scared her deeply. She knew she had seven close friends and her cousin, but she only remembered four of her friends and her cousin.

"If I see the look-alikes of those I still remember here, will I forget them, too? And what about…?" she stopped. There was one particular person from her memories she was more scared of seeing than anyone, for the fear of forgetting what memories she still had of them.

"It's like I said before!" Estelle stopped in her tracks. "I don't want to forget anything more! I want to go home!" She scanned the environment with a frown. "But how do I get back?"

"You know, they say the first sign of madness is when you start talking to yourself," a voice called. Estelle looked up and saw to her surprise the cat from Duchess Judy's house, Cheshire Raven. Estelle couldn't decide if his words were advice or an insult. She took it as the former. Though the latter was more likely, she didn't want to get off on the wrong foot.

"Well, I'll be sure to start worrying if it gets worse," she answered calmly. "Actually, I'm glad I ran into you, Mr. Cheshire." _I'll just call him that for now on._

Cheshire Raven raised a brow in confusion. "Moi?"

"Yes, you see…" Then in a quick and simple matter, she explained to the cat everything that had happened to her. She made sure to include the memory loss, which is where the cat intervened.

"Now that's interesting. You mean to tell that me that you're suddenly started having your memories fly away like a bird?" His cackled [_Why does that laugh sound so familiar? _Estelle thought].

Estelle grew annoyed. "I came here asking for your help, and you laugh in my face!"

Cheshire Raven sighed with a grin on his face as he picked at his ear in boredom. "Well, can't say that I know anything about that, sweetheart."

"What?" Estelle said, startled. "But the caterpillar said you would know!"

"That's true," Cheshire Raven said, scratching his chin. "But I don't know everything. After all…"

Estelle blinked and he was gone from the branch he was sitting in. _Where'd he go? _Estelle asked.

"I'm just a cat," she heard him answer, turning to her right to see him sitting on a lower branch on another tree.

Estelle was known for being very calm and patient even in stressful situations. However, those traits were starting to fade off the longer she remained in this world. She felt like screaming in anger, but she took several deep breaths instead. She didn't want to scare Cheshire Raven away.

"Well then, Mr. Cheshire. If you can't answer my memory problem, then can you tell me which direction I should go?"

"That depends on where you want to go," Cheshire Raven answered, swinging his legs onto the branch and leaning back against the tree truck.

_Home_, Estelle wanted to say, but she knew that it wasn't here in this strange world. Considering what she had been through all day, or the last few days [she didn't know which one it was anymore], she answered with, "I don't care where-"

"Then it doesn't matter where you go, really," Cheshire Raven interrupted.

"-as long as I end up somewhere other than here," Estelle finished.

"If you walk long enough," the cat said, a hint of a purr in his voice, "there's no doubt you'll get there, wherever that may be."

Estelle shook her head. Just like with Witcherpillar, she was getting nowhere with getting answers from this cat, though what he said was true in a way.

"If it doesn't matter where I go," Estelle started, attempting another question, "Then where would you suggest I go?"

"Well," Cheshire Raven said, sitting up, "There's a Hatter that lives that direction." He pointed to his right and Estelle's left to where one path led off the main road. "And a March Hare in that direction." He pointed to his left and Estelle's right towards a second path that also led off the main road.

_A Hatter and a March Hare…_ Estelle thought, switching her attention between the two paths several times. _Which one will help me though?_

"Of course, it doesn't matter which one you take," Cheshire Raven stated. "They're both mad."

That snapped Estelle from her thoughts. "But I don't want to be among mad people!" she exclaimed.

"Sorry, can't help you there. Everyone here's mad, even me and you," the cat answered.

Estelle's first responded would have been to ask how she was mad, but decided against it. Losing her memories was enough proof for her. She didn't even want to know why he believed himself to be mad. "I've seen plenty of hatters where I'm from, so I'll see the March Hare. Thank you for the help."

With that, she turned right and started following the path. She assumed that the cat would lose interest after a moment and vanish. What she didn't know was that he had vanished, only to reappear a few feet closer to her and watch her go with a curious look in his eye.

_Hmm… I probably should have told her this, but… _He smirked. _I think she may just be the one to end all this madness._ He shrugged and slowly began to disappear again. Eventually, only his cheeky grin remained.

After several minutes, even the grin vanished into thin air.

.oOo.

_Ha! Finally I got this chapter done! I hate senior year so much… It's been keeping me as busy as my junior year. This sucks!_

_Anyways, since I'll no doubt be busy with school until about mid-October, it'll probably be a while before I get a chance to post another chapter. Keep an eye out!_

_Later!_

_Edit: I just realized this just before I posted: it's been exactly two months since my last post. Huh..._


	8. It's always Tea Time for a Reason

|| Estelle in Wonderland ||

.oOo.

Disclaimer: TOV and the original _Alice in Wonderland _are not mine and shall never be mine.

Claimer: Nothing in this chapter, that's for sure.

A/N: Man, I've been waiting for this chapter for so long! And I'm sorry for the late update. Senior Year is not easy.

.oOo.

**Chapter 8: It's always Tea Time for a Reason**

Fortunately for Estelle, she didn't have to go far from the main road to find the March Hare's house. It was easy to tell it belonged to the Hare: the chimneys were shaped like rabbit ears and the roof was thatched in fur. However, it was the house's shape that scared the princess.

"It looks… like Rita's house…" Estelle said, dread in her heart. Other than the rabbit features, it was like looking at an exact copy of Rita's home in Aspio. It even appeared secluded from its surroundings with it sitting at the end of a cliff which sat over a bottomless pit.

"Pleaseletmenotseealookalike. Pleaseletmenotseealookalike," Estelle chanted as she approached. _I don't want to forget anymore faces._

Hesitantly, she knocked and watched as the door opened several seconds later. She peeked inside, but saw no one. The smell of biscuits and tarts did catch her nose's attention and her stomach growled. It had been a while since she had a proper meal, but she was more afraid of what the food here would do to her rather than whether it was tasty or not.

"What are you waiting for?" a voice shouted, and a very familiar one at that. Estelle's heart dropped.

_Oh please no…_ Estelle thought, taking a step into the hallway and closing the door behind her. With the light of the sun now gone, Estelle spotted a light shining from under a door merely ten feet away.

"_Come on~!_ We haven't got all day!" the voice said again, and Estelle timidly took a step forward. Her heart beat rapidly with every step she took; dread made her blood run cold. She truly wanted to run around, run out the door, and run back to the main path she had taken before. But something kept pushing her forward. Something made her place her hand on the door handle and slowly turn it, basking her in the light that came from the other side.

It was a dining room, much like Duchess Judy's, but it appeared to be wider and as long as a hallway, as inaccurate as that was. The wall opposite of the door did not exist; rather, it opened up into a small garden with plants more bizarre than Duchess Judy's. A large table spanned the entire hallway, chairs and couches were squashed together, leaving little room to actually get into them.

"Down here!" the voice called again, this time louder than before. Estelle looked down towards the end of the table where the voice came from, but couldn't see the speaker; she was too far away. She made her way up the table, hoping yet unenthusiastic to get a glance at the owner of the voice. The chairs, however, were so tall that they mostly blocked her view of the end of the table. She only got small glimpses of the house's resident, or residents, but she hardly got a look before a chair blocked her again.

Eventually, she reached the final chair which stood higher than her. From where she stood, she saw someone's hand lying on the table, but not the actual person for whom it belonged to. She hesitated.

_I don't want to forget. I don't want to forget. I don't want to forget…_ Estelle thought over and over again. She feared of losing it were she to see one more friendly face from home. When she finally stepped forward, she grabbed onto the chair as her knees became too weak to support her.

At the opposite end of the table was a young girl with brown hair, two beige-colored ears popping out of her head. She had a stern, almost annoyed expression on her face.

The memories of Rita vanished.

Sitting next to her was a boy with brown hair slicked back, mouse ears attacked to his head, and Estelle could see a mouse tail moving around on its own. The boy appeared to be between sleep and wake.

All the time with Karol disappeared.

At the head of the table was an older man with long, black hair and a top hat sitting with comfort on his head. He had a familiar smirk on his face. "Welcome," he said.

As the reminiscences with Yuri scattered from her mind, the pressure built up until a sob escaped her lips and the tears fell from her eyes. Her legs eventually gave out completely as she collapsed to the floor in a heap of sobs.

"W-Wha-?" the hare said, jumping from her seat. She turned towards the hatter. "Why is she crying? D-Do something about this!"

The hatter sighed, but obeyed none the less. He stood up only to kneeled down to where Estelle sat crying. He had to tap her shoulder to get her attention. As much as Estelle didn't want to, she looked up into his eyes. Oh why, oh why were his eyes so familiar to her?

"Is that anyway a girl should act?" he asked. His attitude towards her was definitely familiar. It was rude, yet concerning at the same time. "Come on."

He offered a hand and Estelle took it, allowing him to lift her off the floor and into the chair she had been leaning against during her mini breakdown. She gasped when something was tossed into her face, and found it to be a handkerchief. She turned in the direction the cloth had come from to see the hare blushing. "I-I just don't want you leaving tearstains on the table cloth! It's not like I'm being nice or anything!" Her attitude definitely felt familiar as well, but Estelle, much to her dismay, couldn't recall where she heard it before. None the less, she accepted the token and dabbed her eyes until they were as dry as they could be, though they were was still a tint of redness to indicate that she had been crying a moment ago.

"I'm sorry," said Estelle as the hatter returned to his seat. "I've been through a lot today, and I guess it got to be too much."

"Everyone's got their bad days," the hatter said, laying his chin on his hands. "Today just happened to be yours, huh?"

Estelle nodded. "I've had worse days than this, but even so, today has not been one of the good days." The residence of the table nodded, minus the mouse who continued to sleep.

"We all get that. Well, except for me, of course," the hare replied. The hatter answered back with a snicker in which the hare glared at him. Estelle couldn't help but smile, only to frown a moment later. The scene gave her déjà vu, but she couldn't figure out what. The hatter saw the transformation in the corner of his eye and turned back to face her.

"Start at the beginning, and when you come to the end… stop," said the hatter, a smirk on his face. "Of course, you don't have to talk if you don't want to."

Estelle thought about it, and realized that the last thing she wanted to do was keep this emotions in her bottled up. She didn't know why, but she felt she could trust the three strangers before her. She only wished she could remember where she saw them before.

"I'd love for you to listen, but…" She blushed slightly, "I'm afraid I don't know your names." The two conscious members of the trio flinched, the third hardly moving a muscle at the comment (he was asleep after all). The hatter and the hare stared at each other for a moment before facing Estelle once more.

"Well, I'm Rita Hare, and that," she pointed towards the hatter, "is Yuri Hatter. This," she smacked a first into the mouse's head once, causing him to snort awake, "is Karol Dormouse." She eyed Estelle. "And you are?"

"Me? Oh, I'm Estelle…" She hesitated. "At least that who I think I am."

"What do you mean?" Yuri Hatter asked.

"Well, I've changed sizes so many times, and I've forgotten so many things, I'm starting to doubt my own identity. You see…" She went on to explain all that had happened to her, from the meeting with Rabbit Flynn to her talk with Witcherpillar to the encounter with Duchess Judy and so forth. She was interrupted a few times for Rita Hare to ask questions which Estelle answered to the best of her knowledge. Sometime during the duration of her story, Karol Dormouse appeared to fall back asleep, so whether he was actually listening was anybody's guess.

By the time Estelle concluded her tale, the table was in silence. Even Rita Hare wouldn't speak despite all the questions before, leaving Estelle to wait in the awkwardness. The silence was only broken when Yuri Hatter cleared his throat.

"So you have no idea why you're forgetting all these _important_ people in your life," he asked.

"No," Estelle answered.

"And you just want to find a way back home, right?"

"That's right."

"But you have no idea how to do that since you have no idea how you exactly got her in the first place."

"That's correct."

Yuri Hatter was silent for several seconds before a devious smirk appeared on his face. "So you're an Outerling, huh?"

"What?" Estelle started. "What's an Outerling? Does that something to do with my lost memories?"

The hatter turned towards his long-eared companion. "You know more about this stuff than I do. Explain it to her, won't you?"

"Fine, fine, whatever," Rita Hare replied before clearing her throat. "An Outerling is basically just an outsider."

"An outsider? To this country?" Estelle asked, which reminded her that she still had no idea where she was.

"It's more than that," Rita Hare answered. "An Outerling is an outsider to this world."

"What?" Estelle asked, shock on her face. _To this world? How is that possible?_

.oOo.

_It's a crappy end to a chapter, but I suppose it's a good place to leave as a cliphanger. And again, I am sorry for the lack of update. I need a new way of keeping a weekly update or something. Man…_


End file.
